“In a project Casa Batlló has described as a ‘remarkable rediscovery,’ the back façade has been returned to its original state following a years-long €3.5 million ($4 million) initiative. ... This was the first comprehensive attention that has been paid to the building’s rear in more than a century.” - Artnet
“From its perch 5,000 feet above sea level, the ancient al-Qahira Castle has watched over Yemen’s third-largest city, Taiz, for more than 800 years. ... But the future of its weathered walls is now uncertain — not because of threats from invaders or empires, but because of the sudden suspension of restoration funds.” - Smithsonian Magazine
Prolific authors are not only calling out people who use AI to write, they’re also posting livestreams and time-lapses of their writing processes to defend themselves against such complaints. - Wired
Art Basel’s flagship event in Switzerland now faces formidable challenges. The 289 gallerists from 42 countries participating in this year’s edition of the fair, whose V.I.P. preview opened on Tuesday, are trying to make sales at a time when the art market is in a slump and the world is in turmoil. - The New York Times
Firefighters who helped the 80-year-old driver from his vehicle say that he was uninjured and disoriented but not intoxicated. A crane removed the car from the travertine staircase, which is evidently undamaged. - Artnet
For decades it was the contemporary art world’s do-not-miss fair, but the Swiss mother-ship now faces competition from Art Basel events in Qatar, Hong Kong, Miami Beach, and, especially, Paris, a city which experience-minded collectors are likely to prefer to sedate Basel. - The New York Times
The Beaux-Arts landmark on the Champs-Elysées, built for the Paris Universal Exhibition (World’s Fair) in 1900, has been renovated for the first time in its history. Among the Pompidou exhibitions so far is Fun Palace, a pink, textile structure designed by Rotterdam architect Studio Ossidiana as a habitable "living laboratory.” - Dezeen
Depending on your perspective, Broad’s art is either a pioneering display of pure artificial creativity, a look into the very soul of AI, or a clever but meaningless electronic by-product, closer to guitar feedback than music. - The Verge
Calder Gardens will be a stylized oasis with woodlands, wildflower-filled prairie meadows, and rivers of grasses running through it — all carefully laid out by landscape designer Piet Oudolf to maintain visual interest year-round. (However, it will probably take two years for the plants to grow into Oudolf’s vision.) - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
“As the conflict with Israel continues to escalate, Iran has closed its museums and cultural heritage sites until further notice, according to local news reports. Officials have also ordered valuable artefacts across the country to be relocated to secure storage facilities.” - The Art Newspaper
A couple visiting the Palazzo Maffei museum in the Italian city of Verona was caught on closed-circuit TV sitting on artist Nicola Bolla’s Swarovski-encrusted “van Gogh” chair. The piece folded under the man’s weight, and the pair promptly ran from the room - ARTnews
A rehang tends to elicit strong reactions from anyone with a stake in the collection – and in the case of a public gallery, “anyone” means “everyone”. Unsurprisingly then, it has only been done twice at the National Gallery since the second world war. - The Conversation
“In light of the current regional developments, it has been decided to postpone the official opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum,” the GEM explained in a statement on social media. - ARTnews
“The Louvre’s spontaneous strike erupted during a routine internal meeting, as gallery attendants, ticket agents and security personnel refused to take up their posts in protest over unmanageable crowds, chronic understaffing and what one union called ‘untenable’ working conditions.” - AP
“It’s not just a genre,” he told me over email. “It’s a form expression for a younger generation of artists, which is both natural for them, profoundly inventive, and engaging for their viewers.” - Artnet
